


You Know

by sweetkisses



Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Eddie just being the adorable gay boy he is, Eddie-centric, Fluff, Germs, Happy, Kissing, M/M, No Pennywise Story, Richie Being Richie, Self-Acceptance, Short, mention of Ben and Bev
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-03
Updated: 2017-10-03
Packaged: 2019-01-08 16:06:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12257670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetkisses/pseuds/sweetkisses
Summary: Eddie discovering who he is, who he likes and how to say it all out loud.





	You Know

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a very short fic, I was writing a different plot line and then this came out so here is this fic instead. I also have never read the book so if something is incorrect please let me know and I'll fix it. I also don't have a beta so hit me up if you see any mistakes. Also don't focus too much on the time, just know that it is the 80s. 
> 
> This is my first Reddie fic and if you like it then stay tuned because i'm working on more. 
> 
> Enjoy :)

Eddie was only 13 when he knew he was gay. It wasn’t too surprising yet surprising all in the same. Of course in the small town of Derry, being gay wasn’t too accepted. He knew he was struggling with  _something_  internally. At first he thought it was just his fear of sickness and disease that his mother forced into him throughout his whole life. Then he figured it all out.

It was a Tuesday. Summer had just begun and all the losers were sat outside on the library steps of all places. It was nice out, warm in the sun and chilly in the shade. It was the perfect weather in Eddie’s honest opinion. He was sitting next to Beverly and Stan, while Bill, Ben, Mike and Richie sat on the step in front of them.

“I think I’m going to get a nice tan this summer.” Bev said, leaning back on the step behind her and tilting her pale face up to the sun. Her short ginger hair looked like a halo around her head.

“You look pretty, tan or pale.” Ben says quietly and Bev just smiles at her boyfriend’s comment.

“I think you should be careful, the sun’s rays are very harmful. If you don’t apply enough sunscreen then you can get sun burn and that can lead to skin discoloration and heat waves and-.”

“Way to be a buzz kill, Eddie.” Beverly interrupts his rant, laying a hand on his arm for a few seconds. Eddie means well but everyone knows that once he gets going about health and sickness he won’t stop. Thank his overbearing mother who pounded all the facts into him. Eddie shakes his head and sits up, facing the group even though only Bill and Mike are looking at him.

“I’m just saying, my mom told me about her friend who sat out in the sun one day and got so sunburnt that she had to have half her skin-.” Eddie is interrupted again by a pale  _dirty_ hand touching his bare knee- Richie’s dirty hand to be exact. Damn does that boy ever bathe? Eddie internally jerks back, his stomach feeling weird with the gentle dirty hand touching him.

“Ed’s don’t you worry you’re Snow White pale skin will be safe and if anything happens I’ll be your Prince Charming to wake you up.” He makes an obnoxious kissing sound towards Eddie. Said boy just blinks in response, his knee burning from where Richie’s hand still lies.

“That makes no sense.” Stan says before leaning back to join Beverly in her tanning position. Eddie looks at him, scanning Stan’s thin body for a second before looking out at the street. The fellow losers start talking about something but Eddie isn’t truly focusing, only nodding his head whenever he feels someone’s, mostly Richie’s, eyes in his direction. His stomach still feels weird, not a bad weird but not a good weird either.

Why is feeling this though? It doesn’t make much sense to him. Richie’s always dirty, no doubt he’s dirty, that boy rolls around in the mug and grass more days then he even looks at a bar of soap. He’s also always touching Eddie- ruffling his hair, tickling him, cuddling him, tackling him, hugging him, etc. So why does his dirty hand on Eddie’s leg feel so... _different_.

This isn’t the first time that he’s felt this in his stomach. Once Richie was on one of his weird ass, loud ass, speeches that somehow ended with him leaving a wet kiss on Eddie’s cheek. Eddie doesn’t really remember what happened after that but his face was red the rest of the night and when he fell into bed he smiled at the ceiling.

There was also that one time when Eddie and Stan were looking at magazines and Eddie grabbed one with bathing suits in it. He just flipped past all the beautiful girls and stared at the muscular shirtless guy section way longer than he needed too. He blames that action on that cold he had that week.

So maybe, Eddie is feeling what he felt on those times. It does feel nice, if he avoids the germs on Richie’s hand that are crawling onto his leg- it feels really nice. Beverly’s hand didn’t feel like this. Hers was soft and smooth while Richie’s hand is rough. It is weird. He breaks out of his thoughts when the hand slips off his knee, leaving the spot cold until Eddie frowns and slides his own hand to where Richie’s once laid. Eddie forces himself to focus back on his friend’s conversation, only catching the end of it.

“Well! Let us not sit here and burn to crispy fries!” Richie shouts, using a terrible Shakespeare voice. “Let’s go on an adventure!” Everyone groans but slowly stands up once Bill decides they can’t sit on the steps all day.

They end up at the Barrens. No surprise there. Richie tried to lead them to the arcade but Bill said it was too nice to be inside. Also Eddie went on a little rant about how many germs are on each of those machines because so many kids touch them and the owner never wipes the machines down. Mike gets him to stop by grabbing his arm and yanking him away from the front of the arcade.

Weirdly though, when they arrive to Barrens they aren’t alone. Eddie sees them first, two boys lying by the water and kissing quite furiously. He freezes and blushes a deep red, the already odd feeling in his stomach gets increasingly worse. Or better. He isn’t sure.

“O-Oh!” Bills says loudly when he sees them, stopping a bit in front of Eddie. The boys haven’t seen or heard them yet. The boy on top is sucking at the others neck and running his hand down and down and-

“Aw damn! They claimed our orgy spot!” Richie’s yells. The boys hear him and quickly break apart and stand up as if all the losers didn’t just see them almost fucking. They adjust their clothes very fast both the boys have flushed faces and there is a small hickey on the ones neck. Eddie’s face somehow turns an even more deep red so he ducks down and finds the rock below his feet very interesting.

“Sorry, we were...uh-.” Eddie hears one the of the boys start, he’s breathing heavy. Both the boys are and Eddie too. That was just... those boys were... Eddie ignores the fast beating of his heart.  _Fuck_ , what’s wrong with him.

“-leaving.” The other boy finishes. Eddie glances up at the boys. They’re in high school, he’s seen them around town a few times but couldn’t be certain of their names.

“Ar-.” Bill starts but one of the boys’ grabs the other's hand and pulls him into a run away from the losers. Eddie watches them run, staring at their clasped hands, he feels a pull towards that but shakes his head quickly.

“That was gay.” Is all Richie says, standing super close to Eddie’s back.

“T-t-there’s nothing wrong w-with b-being g-g-gay.” Is what Bill says. Eddie hears the losers’ hums of agreement.

“As long as Bowers doesn’t find out then sure- nothing wrong with that.” Stan presses. Eddie is still looking at the ground as the word swims through his head and invades every thought he’s ever had.

Gay.

 The two  _gay_  boys. That’s what they were. Gay. Boy on boy. Eddie with a boy. No. Eddie with a girl. Girls are gross though...shouldn’t he have removed pasted that phrase. The whole girls have cooties. He is pasted that. Beverly doesn’t have cooties. But that doesn’t mean he’s not gay. Right?

The losers all settle down on the ground, deciding a game to play. Eddie doesn’t speak once during the discussion, too focused on his thoughts swimming around his head.

“We can’t play that we are odd numbered.” Eddie hears Ben say from beside him. Before Eddie can think his body flings himself off the ground with a jingle from the pills in his fanny pack. Everyone looks at him curiously.

“I’m going home.” He announces, not trusting himself to talk too long afraid his thoughts of gay will somehow will fall out of his mouth. “Stomach ache.” He lies and then runs off before any of the losers could question him.

*

When Eddie makes it home he goes straight to his bedroom and locks the door. He grabs an old notebook and pencil before sitting on his bed. He writes at the top of the page.

 

_ Am I gay? _

 

The small boy taps his notebook with the pencil as he stares at those three letters. He thinks, he  _really_  thinks, of his past. He thinks of how everyone else likes girls. He thinks about how he reacted when Richie touched him but not when Bev did. He thinks about how he secretly bought that bathing suit magazine to look at the boys in it. He thinks about how he stares at all the boys in school longer than the girls. He thinks about how the losers reacted today. He thinks about how badly he wanted to be one of those boys today. He thinks about how he wants to kiss a boy.

He also thinks about that gay kid who got stabbed last year right outside Derry. He thinks about the terror on the high school boys faces today. He thinks about his moms talks about medicine to help the girls who kiss girls and the boys who kiss boys. He thinks about Henry Bowers finding another reason to bully the short, fanny pack wearing loser.

Eddie blinks his tears eyes and looks down at the paper before smiling as he writes down his answer.

 

_Yes._

 

*

Eddie is 14 when he tells the losers.

Everyone is meeting at Bill's place. They are having a sleepover to celebrate the beginning of summer and their change into high school that fall. Eddie is sitting on his doorstep, leg bouncing and shaking his fanny pack as he waits for Richie. They are walking together and for some reason Eddie decided tonight was the night he was going to come out to the other losers. But before he tells anyone else, he needs to tell Richie because that’s his best friend.

Time passes and soon Richie is strutting up to his house wearing a white T-shirt, an ugly Hawaiian shirt, shorts and those famous big glasses. Eddie is wearing a pink shirt and his red shorts, terrible coloring but oh well.

“Ed’s my boy.” Richie smiles, adjusting his backpack that is hanging off one shoulder (he claims that this is the cool way to wear it and he will wear it like this their whole high school career).

“Don’t call me that.” He responds, no heat behind the words. His mind too focused on confessing himself. Eddie slips his hands up and hooks them around each of his backpack straps, looking at the ground as him and Richie begin to walk.

“You love it.” Richie reaches out to ruffle Eddie’s hair but the smaller boy dodges it quickly.

“I love it when you shut up.” He teases.

“That’s not what your mom said to me last night.”

“Ugh, you’re disgusting.” He responds, staring at the ground.

“So I brought ghostbusters because Mike asked me too but I also have the breakfast club with me because I think we all need a little high school loving before we actually start in a few months.” Richie explains, waving his arms as he talks.

Eddie just nods at him. His confession sits on the tip of his tongue and he’s afraid if he even opens his mouth then he’ll spill the truth. He can do this though, he has too, he wants to be out and be himself. He wants to not worry about looking at boys and being caught. He just wants his friends to accept him and still love him.

“I also almost brought Say Anything because I know you love that movie,” he nudges Eddie, “but I figured that I’d just watch it with your mo-.”

“I’m gay.” Word vomit. Great.

Both boys stop walking, Richie turning to Eddie, his eyes wide behind the coke bottle glasses. The smaller boy looks up with nervous eyes at his taller friend. It scares Eddie how silent Richie is, his mouth opening and closing while just staring at Eddie. A full minute of silent passes between the two boys.

 “I never thought I would say this but please- _please_  say something, Rich.” Tears are in his eyes, he already feels rejection from his best friend. Richie who he has known since he was six. Richie who helped him when he broke his arm after falling off his bike when they were 12. Richie who stayed with Eddie when he cried for hours after finding out the medicine his mom has been feeding him is fake. Richie who secretly cares around Eddie extra inhaler- just in case.

Richie will accept him-no he  _needs_  to accept him or Eddie will break.

“Well.” Richie says, his voice neutral. “Maybe we should stop at the movie store so I can get the Rocky Horror Picture Show for you.” He smiles.

“Seriously-” Eddie crosses his arms over his chest, “-that’s the weirdest fucking movie.”

“If that’s what you think then we won’t stop for it.” Richie’s smile is bright it hurts Eddie to look at it, he looks down at his fanny pack instead. 

“You’re not...disgusted?” The small boy asks, tears still in his eyes.

“Fuck no,” he throws an arm around Eddie’s shoulder, “you’re my best friend Eddie, I’m gonna love you even if your fucking the holes in donuts.”

“Now that’s disgusting.” Eddie snorts, wiping his eyes and smiling at his best friend. Richie just shrugs.

“Let’s get going, the others are probably waiting.” Richie pulls Eddie by his hand and the small boy tries to ignore the butterflies he gets. Maybe it’s the germs from Richie’s hand but he knows it’s not. 

Eddie doesn’t need to worry about telling the other losers because as soon as they walk into Bill’s house everyone is already there as Richie shouts to them all.

“Eddie is gay! He’s in love with me so don’t any of you boys try to take him away.” He tries to kiss Eddie’s cheek but the small boy slips away, his face red.

“Proud of you.” Bev whispers into his ear, he smiles at her while all the other boys say things along the same line. Everyone makes Eddie feel loved and accepted. The losers all settle down to watch the movies but Eddie doesn’t focus because he’s too worried about the second half of Richie’s statement earlier. He looks over at the obnoxious boy who’s sitting on the opposite couch. The butterflies in his stomach flap loudly and Eddie fears that Richie is correct.

*

Eddie is 16 when he first kisses a boy. It’s no surprise honestly- well it’s a surprise to him because the boy he kisses is Richie.

Stan, Eddie, Richie, and Bill are all sat in the library doing their homework. Or at least trying too as Richie whispers loudly about how he didn’t deserve the detention he got last week. (He totally deserved it- he showed up late to five classes in a row.) The librarian has shushed Richie three times already and no matter how many times Bill also tells him to be quiet the boy just won’t shut up.

“I’m such an honor student and as an honor student the last thing I need is detention. As Eddie would say ‘detention would go on my permit record and then I’ll be a failure my whole life-.”

“In that case, you were a failure way back in 6th grade during your first detention.” Stan interrupts, “I’m going to find a book.” And he leaves the table, Richie takes that as an opportunity to talk directly into Eddie’s ear.

“I mean, Eddie you remember that one time we got detention together-.”

“More like you got in trouble and Eddie was in the wrong place at the wrong time.” Bill says. Eddie nods at him but Richie acts as if Bill didn’t even speak.

“-and then we were talking during detention-“

“You were the one talking.” Eddie interrupts, flipping through his textbook. He’s been trying to concentrate for the last ten minutes. He has a huge test tomorrow and right now he couldn’t even tell you what year the Declaration of Independence was signed.

“-and we had to stay an extra hour. You nearly pissed your pants in anger. Like fuck Ms. Johnson and her dumbass rules. I think she’s after me. I think she wants me because she’s always giving me detention with her-.”

“Oh my god!” Eddie slams his hands down on the table loudly, gaining a shush from the librarian. “What will it take for you to shut the fuck up? I’ll do anything!”

Richie taps his finger against his chin as he thinks over what he wants, “how about a kiss?”

For some reason, maybe it’s the frustration or the stress Eddie has over this test or maybe it’s because Richie is so fucking annoying but also so fucking cute in his glasses. It’s definitely because Eddie has a crush on Richie. But Eddie leans forward and plants a kiss onto Richie’s lips. 

“There. Now shut up.” Eddie growls and turns back to his textbook. He reads three words and then freezes. He just kissed Richie. Oh  _fuck_ -. 

“U-u-um.” Bill between Eddie and Richie with wide eyes. Eddie stares at his textbook with even wider eyes and red cheeks. “I’m g-g-gonna go h-help S-Stan.” And he’s gone. 

“So, did you know that Thomas Jefferson wrote-.”

 “Kiss me again.” Richie whispers. Eddie blinks over to him, the boy’s face has a smile and red cheeks. He’s so handsome and only-  _only_  because Richie asked quietly. He kisses him again.

*

“What are you doing?” Richie freezes from where half his leg is sticking into Eddie’s bedroom window. 

“Surprise?” Richie smirks, finishing his climb into the window and throwing himself on Eddie’s bed. The smaller boy is sitting on it, wearing a white shirt and those legendary red shorts.

“It’s seven in the morning on a Saturday. This is the last place I expected you to be.” He voices. Richie adjust his position until his head in seated in Eddie’s lap, his hair tickles the small boy’s legs.

“God forbid I missed my tiny boyfriend, Ed’s.” He closed his eyes behind his glasses. Eddie begins to play with his boyfriends curls and admires the Hawaiian shirt that has fanned out around him. He’s lucky. Eddie someone ended up with the boy he probably never expected himself to be with. Richie Tozier of all people is who Eddie loves. Richie who is following Eddie to college just so they can be together.

Bev swears that she saw it coming -Eddie and Richie- but she actually knew because every time her and Richie smoked he would just non-stop talk about Eddie in his tiny red shorts. She of course told Ben who told Mike and Stan who told Bill who just sighed because he already knew as well. The loser’s aren’t blind.

“Don’t call me that and I don’t know why you would miss me we hung out just last night.” Eddie blushes, recalling how last night Richie took him to the Barrens and kissed him under the stars until Eddie needed his inhaler. It was hot and sweet and one of Eddie’s favorite nights.

“Speaking of last night,” Richie sits up, turns around and faces Eddie, “do you wanna continue where we left off?” Eddie doesn’t bother responding as Richie crawls forward, laying Eddie back and kissing him slowly. Richie’s mouth tastes like candy as he transfers his germs into Eddie- Eddie is over that now, he basically begs for Richie’s germs.

“Oh, and I wasn’t coming to see you today.” Eddie hums into the kiss, expecting Richie to say something sweet. “I was actually breaking in through your window because it’s easier to get to your mom’s room.”

Eddie pushes him off the bed.

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts? Let me know!


End file.
